The Sprout: Cache Valley disease outbreak hits Ontario lambs

Happy National French Bread Day, where your host is forever contemplating whether she should attempt to make Julia Child’s ridiculously time-consuming baguette recipe.

Now, here’s today’s agriculture news.

The Lead:

An Ontario outbreak of Cache Valley disease, a little-known virus that leads to birth deformities in lambs, has veterinarians worried. While the virus currently poses a low risk to humans, experts worry the disease may be causing more problems than first believed. The Toronto Star explains.

In Canada:

The Alberta government has reached a new 10-year agreement with the province’s horse racing industry. Finance Minister Joe Ceci announced the new agreement in a weekend news release with Horse Racing Alberta. The contract is expected to create 1,600 new jobs in rural Alberta. CTV News Calgary has the details.

The Liberals first federal budget is less 36 hours away. Canadian dairy farmers said Friday that Tuesday’s fiscal plan must include compensation for the pending Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement with Europe. iPolitics reports.

Internationally:

The U.S food industry is embroiled in one of its most heated regulatory battles in years over state efforts to label GMO foods. As The Wall Street Journal reports, the fight isn’t going industry’s way.

American chicken producers are excited about possible trade opportunities with Cuba. As President Barack Obama continues his historic visit to Cuba, the U.S. chicken industry is eager for normalized relations. Bloomberg News has that story.

It’s a story that’s all too familiar to Canadian farmers – there simply aren’t enough farm workers. But as the Argus Leader reports, a new survey has found the labour crunch is also being felt south of the border. An employment report released in 2015 by the Agriculture Department estimated there are nearly 60,000 high-skilled agricultural job openings annually in the United States, but only 35,000 graduates available to fill them.

Noteworthy:

Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay is scheduled to appear at the House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food at 3:30 EST this afternoon.

Cattle placed in U.S. feedlots in February jump to 8-year high (Reuters)

A election debate on agriculture issues in Saskatchewan is scheduled for tomorrow in Saskatoon. The debate will be live streamed on the Western Producer website.

The Kicker:

We end with a programming note. There will be no Sprout tomorrow because yours truly will be locked up for the federal budget. iPolitics will have full coverage of the budget starting at 4p.m. EST. Fear not, we’ll be back on Wednesday – with a better idea of which ketchup truly rules the Canadian palate.